The Nigerian government has announced plans to kick off a N30 billion yearly Gratuity Framework for civil servants in treasury-funded Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs) under the Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS).
The National Pension Commission (PenCom), in a statement on Tuesday, said it is collaborating with the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation (OHCSF) to actualize the initiative.
The framework was discussed when the Director General of PenCom, Omolola Oloworaran, paid a courtesy visit to the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation (HCSF), Mrs Didi Esther Walson-Jack, last week.
Speaking about boosting retirement benefits, Oloworaran told the Head of Service that PenCom is working on modalities for the establishment of a Gratuity Scheme, in line with Section 4(4)(a) of the PRA 2014, for retiring employees of Federal Government treasury-funded MDAs.
The PenCom DG said it has been estimated that the gratuity scheme would cost the Federal Government about N30 billion per annum, as confirmed by the 2024 Stakeholders Committee on Outstanding Pension Liabilities, if retiring federal employees are paid 100 percent of their last gross annual remuneration.
Oloworaran said the amount represented a modest but impactful intervention to improve the welfare of those who have served the nation with dedication.
She noted that previous collaboration between PenCom and the Office of the Head of Service yielded significant progress, including securing a Federal Executive Council (FEC) approval for a N758 billion bond to clear outstanding pension liabilities under the CPS.
In response, the HCSF, Walson-Jack, expressed her full support for all the initiatives and commended PenCom for its proactive approach to improving pension administration. She pledged to issue the necessary circulars to MDAs and to collaborate closely with PenCom in developing the modalities and securing the approvals for the gratuity scheme.
Walson-Jack said civil servants have been calling for gratuities and expressed her full backing for the proposed scheme.
Nigerian Govt to commence N30bn yearly gratuity scheme for civil servants
